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Par for the Course

In fact, it’s my favorite of the entire season. For so many reasons, some of which include that through these challenges and the many twists I presented to the Masters, I was able to get to know each chef much more intimately. And I’m confident that you did, too. Pour yourself a generous glass of wine (or a fresh cup of coffee if you’re at the office) and get ready to relish the three-course menu of what I’m about to tell.

The First Course: The Blindfold Taste TestThis was soooo much fun. For one thing, it was physically the closest that I had been to Michael, Hubert, Rick, or Anita at any given moment in the entire competition, and being face-to-face with someone reveals a lot. Only a table with 20 small cups of ingredients, a plate of lemon wedges, and some bread and water separated us. Here we were, stadium spotlights blaring and the clock started ticking. The cameras seemed to descend into darkness, and the entire situation made me feel like something really big was about to happen. I think I can speak for each chef when I say that in that moment, we felt very exposed.

At least for me, though, I wasn’t the one who had to risk being made to look like a fool. Think of the pressure! Here you are, a culinary savant, a Master Chef, being put through the paces of having to test your palate on national TV. It must’ve very intense for each of them because how else do you explain that the highest number of correct answers out of 20 items was only seven? Weren’t you thinking the whole time, "I wanna try it to see how many ingredients I could guess right?"

So Michael was up first. I secured his blindfold and handed him the first cup. He took it, whiffed it deeply, then stuck his index finger into it. Then he tasted. It was silent in the kitchen, yet itwas almost as though you could hear his brain synapses firing back and forth. Michael’s technique continued like that, methodically and analytically as he sniffed first, touched next, and then finally, ate the condiment. Seven correct guesses for Michael.

Then it was Hubert’s turn. Blindfold on, he lept out of the gate. Hubert’s pacing was faster. He tasted each ingredient without necessarily smelling first, and it surprised me, especially afterMichael. Hubert’s approach scored him a five.

Now, Rick. Wow, if I thought Hubert’s method was quicker, Rick’s was 10 times more so. As soon as I handed Rick a cup, he dumped the food into his mouth! Did you hear that one time when he clanked his front tooth on the glass cup of mango? Rick didn’t bother withsmelling the ingredient first. He was a completely trusting and wide-eyed child. It was as if I had told this sweet child that I had something yummy for him to taste, and he lapped it up straight away. Six correct answers for Rick.

And finally, it was Anita’s turn. Anita’s tactic was similar to Michael’s in that she, too, smelled the food before she ate it. Her strategy, though, was to eat as much of each ingredient as possible in the hopes that tasting a lot of the food would make it obvious as towhat it was. A few minutes and many sips of water later, Anita guessed six right.The Second Course: Picking (and Firing) Your TeamWhen the former Top Cheftestants all walked into the Masters kitchen, I was starstruck. Having been a fan of Top Chef from the beginning, I recognized all of the chefs, at least by face. Hey, there was tall CJ and Richard Blais, our molecular gastronomist. Look, there’s ItalianStallion Fabio and Elia who shaved her head during the show. It was surreal to see everyone all at once, and at one point, there were so many bodies running around switching stations during the two-min interviews that it felt like utter chaos.

The Masters had now chosen their staff, and after they returned to the kitchen to start cooking for the Elimination Challenge, I just happened to be in the other room watching. I heard a voice yell, “Who you barkin’ at?” It was Dale. "What was going on?" I thought. “Whachoo gonna do about it?” Dale continued. He and Michael were in a standoff! Dale didn’t back down but Michael didn’t counter him either. It went on for a moment later but in the end, as you saw, nothing came of the spat. Stress levels were definitely high, and the chefs' tensions werestarting to bubble over.

The Third Course: The SLS Hotel and Buffet Lunch

What a rollercoaster day for all of our chefs.

They all woke up at the crack of dawn to start cooking. Pots boiling, pans sizzling, I tiptoed into the kitchen to tell them that we were moving venues in 30 minutes.Fast forward to the SLS Hotel. Now, I informed the chefs that the lunch would be outdoors in the blazing sun. Oh, and one more thing: cut a chef from your team. And please don’t kill the messenger! I wassorry to our masters that every time I appeared, I had another psych-out to reveal.

When our lunch began, Gael, James, Jay and I couldn't be happier. We got to eat some ethereal food in a beautiful location on a hot, sunny day. The Hollywood insiders heightened our excitement and everyone was hungry.

However for me, there was only one Master chef who ran away with the culinary prize that day. His dishes were so extraordinary and each course so delectable that it was downright intoxicating: Hubert Keller.

OMFG.

Hubert’s 18-course feast was so superb and executed with such precision and passion that we couldn’t believe it. In-your-face Vietnamese gazpacho, tender rack of lamb, marinated oysters, red beet with comte cheese — the tastiest beet salad ever — and a parade of nectarous desserts. It was a heart-stopping display of culinary perfection, tantalizing and gratifying all at once. Hubert’s buffet (the word doesn’t begin to do his cuisine justice) was astounding. There were so many dishes that Hubert and his team created that to this day, I want to watch the footage of Hubert’s cooking because I’m convinced he must have had a dozen more elves helping him in the kitchen.

But as stellar as Hubert’s menu was, Anita’s was not. Besides her ribs and a flavorful noodle salad, Anita’s gummy dumplings and raw bar fell flat. I think she got beaten down by the grueling nature of the competition by then, because when Anita is on, she is brilliant. Itwas, of course, sad to see her go, but she had produced some captivating food along the way.

And then there were three: Rick, Michael, and Hubert. The finale, next week, is oh so very special!